Optical communication systems including optical amplifiers and amplification methods

ABSTRACT

Optical systems of the present invention includes power sources that provide dedicated and shared power to a plurality of optical amplification sections. In various embodiments, multiple optical pump sources are provided the include a plurality of optical sources, which supply dedicated optical pump power and shared optical pump power to two or more optical amplification sections. In other embodiments, remote dispersion compensation is performed and Raman amplification is provided to overcome at least a portion of the loss.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.10/962,726, filed Oct. 12. 2004 now U.S. Pat. No. 6,934,077, which is acontinuation of PCT Patent Application Number PCT/US03/11337, filed Apr.14, 2003, which is a continuation-in-part and claims priority from U.S.Provisional Application No. 60/371,994, filed Apr. 12, 2002, all ofwhich are incorporated herein by reference.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not Applicable

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed generally to optical systems. Moreparticularly, the invention relates to optical systems including opticalamplifiers and methods for use therein.

The continued growth in traditional communications systems and theemergence of the Internet as a means for accessing and communicatinginformation has accelerated demand for high capacity communicationsnetworks. Telecommunications service providers, in particular, havelooked to wavelength division multiplexed (“WDM”) transmission systemsto increase the capacity of their optical fiber networks to meet theincreasing demand.

In WDM transmission systems, distinct wavelength ranges that are usefulfor transmission through a transmission medium are allocated to carryseparate information streams simultaneously within the medium.Analogously, distinct frequency ranges can be allocated to carryseparate information streams in frequency division multiplexed (“FDM”)systems. The wavelength/frequency ranges of WDM, FDM, and other systemscarrying multiple information streams are often referred to signalwavelengths/frequencies, or signal channels. The ranges arecharacterized by a center wavelength/frequency, which is typically themid-point of the wavelength/frequency range. The ranges also may becharacterized in other manners, such as the wavelength/frequency ofmaximum power or a relative to reference wavelength/frequency.

In WDM systems, signal channels are transmitted using electromagneticwaves within the distinct wavelength ranges in the optical spectrum,typically in the infrared wavelength range. Each signal channel can beused to carry a single information stream or multiple informationstreams that are electrically or optically time division multiplexed(“TDM”) together into a TDM information stream.

The pluralities of information carrying wavelengths are combined into amultiple channel, “WDM”, optical signal that is transmitted in a singlewaveguide. In this manner, WDM and other multiple channel systems canincrease the transmission capacity of space division multiplexed(“SDM”), i.e., single channel, optical systems by a factor equal to thenumber of channels in the multiple channel system.

The development of optical amplifiers capable of simultaneouslyamplifying multiple optical signals greatly reduced the cost of opticalsystems, and WDM systems in particular. This capabilityessentiallyeliminated the need for expensive electronic repeater equipment toseparate and repeat each signal electrically merely to overcome signalattenuation.

While the development of optical amplifiers has greatly reduced theequipment costs and increased reliability associated with amplifiers inoptical systems, there remain operational concerns. A failure in anoptical amplifier could prevent optical signals from passing through theamplifier and the system. As such, various techniques have beendeveloped to mitigate the impact of a failure in an optical amplifier.For example, redundant pump lasers, or pumps, have been used to provideoptical, or “pump”, power to the amplifier, so that failure of a pumplaser would not cause a failure of the amplifier. However, theadditional cost associated with redundant pumps often does not provide acost effective solution to this problem. Alternatively, pump power froma multiple pump lasers can been combined and shared among two or moreamplifiers to minimize or eliminate the cost associated with pump laserredundancy. However, the sharing of pump lasers requires that theamplifiers be operated in tandem, which significantly constrains theoperation of the individual amplifiers.

In addition, the amount of optical amplification required in a systemdepends upon the system design. For example, various system designsrequire chromatic dispersion compensation to reduce the detrimentalimpact on a signal of chromatic dispersion, which inherently resultsfrom multi-wavelength signal propagation through a transmission fiber.Various techniques have been developed to compensate for chromaticdispersion in the fiber. The most commonly used technique involves theuse of dispersion compensating fiber (“DCF”), which has been designed tohave dispersion characteristics opposite that of a transmission fiber ora second transmission fiber is used that has different dispersioncharacteristics than the transmission fiber used in a span and/orsystem. Some DCF is designed to have significantly more dispersion,e.g., 10×, than the transmission fiber, such that shorter lengths of DCFare required to compensate for the dispersion in the transmission fiber.The design of DCF typically results in a fiber that has a substantiallysmaller core size, i.e., ½ the diameter of standard single mode fiber.

A problem with DCF is that the DCF can have a significant amount of lossassociated with it, which can be, for example, as high as 10 dB or more.To address this problem, DCF is typically deployed proximate, and incombination with, one or more collocated optical amplifiers. However, itis not generally desirable to place DCF proximate the input of anoptical amplifier. This is because the additional loss will decrease theinput signal power to the optical amplifier, thereby degrading theoptical signal to noise ratio (“OSNR”) and effective noise figure of theoptical amplifier. Conversely, it is not desirable to place DCFproximate the output of an optical amplifier. This is due to the smallcore size of the DCF, which can dramatically increase the non-linearsignal interactions and degrade the optical signal to noise ratio(“OSNR”) and effective noise figure of the optical amplifier. As such,DCF is typically placed proximate, i.e., between, two amplifiers,amplification sections, or amplifier stages. In this location, thesignal power entering is higher than at the input to the firstamplification section and lower than the output of the secondamplification section. However, even in this location, the signalchannel powers and non-linear interactions are high and the opticalamplifiers and system must be designed to accommodate the additionalloss and performance degradation resulting from the DCF. Some effortshave been made to ameliorate the loss by providing Raman gain in the DCFbetween the amplifier stages. However, these efforts, while reducing theeffective loss through the DCF can actually increase the signal channelpower and non-linear interactions within the DCF.

There is a continuing interest in the development of higher performance,lower cost communication systems. As such, there is a continuing needfor improved optical systems, amplifiers and amplification methods.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The systems, apparatuses, and methods of the present invention addressthe above need for improved optical systems and optical amplifiers andamplification methods for use therein. Optical systems of the presentinvention include power sources that provide dedicated and shared powerto a plurality of optical amplification sections. In variousembodiments, multiple optical pump sources are provided the include aplurality of optical sources, which supply dedicated optical pump powerand shared optical pump power to two or more optical amplificationsections.

The shared sources provides a continuing source of pump power to eachamplification section in the event of a failure of one or more of theshared sources up to the total number of shared sources. Whereas, thededicated pump power provides for independent control of the opticalamplifier. In various embodiments, multiple pump source modules can beused to provide the shared and dedicated pump power to the opticalamplifiers. In this manner, the failure of a pump source module does notresult in a complete loss of either shared or dedicated pump power toany of the optical amplifiers. In addition, the use of shared anddedicated sources allows more efficient use of pump power in the system.

In various embodiments, optical sources, such as diode and/or fiberlasers, are used to provide shared and dedicated optical “pump” power tomultiple amplification sections, such as rare earth (e.g., Er) doped andnonlinear (e.g., Raman) amplification sections. Shared and dedicatedsources can be used to provide pump power to localized single andmultiple stage erbium doped fiber amplifiers (“EDFA”) and Ramanamplifiers, as well as to distributed amplifiers.

In various embodiments, pump power can be shared between concatenatedamplification sections. For example, pump power can be used to providedistributed Raman gain in a transmission fiber, and also to provideRaman gain in a remotely located, non-transmission fiber, such asdispersion compensating fiber. In this manner, components, such as DCF,can be deployed remotely to vary the signal channel characteristics andgain can be provided to compensate for at least a portion of componentinsertion losses and/or provide excess gain.

The DCF fiber is positioned remotely from discrete amplifiers, such thatthe combination of a lower input power to the DCF and Raman gain withinthe DCF improves the OSNR and effective noise figure performance of thespan relative to positioning the DCF proximate discrete opticalamplifiers. For example, a DCF having a core size that is ½ the coresize of the transmission fiber can be placed where the signal channelpower is at least 6 dB lower than the peak signal channel power in thetransmission fiber, the incremental non-linear phase shift introduced bythe DCF will not exceed the incremental non-linear phase shiftintroduced by a comparable section of the transmission fiber. Inaddition, if Raman gain is provided in the remote DCF to overcome atleast some of the loss of the DCF or provide gain, the powerrequirements and noise figure of the discrete amplifiers will bereduced, thereby improving system performance.

The present invention provides optical amplifiers and amplificationmethods with increased reliability and more efficient power utilizationthat can provide improved optical systems. These advantages and otherswill become apparent from the following detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way ofexample only, with reference to the accompanying schematic drawings forthe purpose of illustrating embodiments only and not for purposes oflimiting the same, wherein:

FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate optical system embodiments; and,

FIGS. 3–8 illustrate exemplary optical amplifier embodiments.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

FIG. 1 illustrates an optical system 10, which includes a plurality ofnodes 12 connected by optical communication paths 14. Advantages of thepresent invention can be realized with many system 10 configurations,topologies, and architectures. For example, an all optical network, oneor more interconnected point to point optical links (FIG. 2), andcombinations thereof can be configured in various topologies, i.e.,rings, mesh, etc. to provide a desired network connectivity.

The system 10 can support one or more transmission schemes, such asspace, time, polarization, code, wavelength and frequency divisionmultiplexing, etc., singly or in combination within a network to providecommunication between the nodes 12. The system 10 can include varioustypes of transmission media 16 and be controlled by a network managementsystem 18.

As shown in FIG. 1, optical processing nodes 12 generally can includeone or more optical components, such as transmitters 20, receivers 22,amplifiers 24, optical switches 26, optical add/drop multiplexers 28,and interfacial devices 30. For example, in WDM embodiments, the node 12can include optical switches 26 and interfacial devices 30 along withmultiple transmitters 20, receivers 22, multiplexers, demultiplexers,and associated equipment, such as processors, monitors, power supplies,system supervisory and network and element management equipment, etc.

The optical processing nodes 12 can be configured via the networkmanagement system 18 in various topologies. For example, the deploymentof integrated transport optical switches 26, and optical add/dropmultiplexers 28 as integrated switching devices in intermediate nodes 12_(i) can provide all-optical interconnections between the transmitters20 and receivers 22 located in non-adjacent origination and destinationnodes, 12 _(o) and 12 _(d), respectively. The use of integratedtransport switching devices in the system 10 in this manner provides fordistance independent all-optical networks, sub-networks, and/or nodalconnections.

In various network embodiments, multiple paths, e.g., 14 ₁ and 14 ₂, canbe provided between nodes 12. The optical path 14 between adjacent nodes12 is referred to generally as an optical link. The opticalcommunication path 14 between adjacent optical components, typicallyoptical amplifiers, along the link is referred to generally as a span.

Various guided and unguided transmission media 16, such as fiber,planar, and free space media, can be used to form the opticalcommunication paths 14. The media 16 supports the transmission ofinformation between originating nodes 12 _(o) and destination nodes 12_(d) in the system 10. As used herein, the term “information” should beconstrued broadly to include any type of audio, video, data,instructions, or other signals that can be transmitted.

The transmission media 16 can include one or more optical fibersinterconnecting the nodes 12 in the system 10. Various types of fiber,such as dispersion shifted (“DSF”), non-dispersion shifted (“NDSF”),non-zero dispersion shifted (“NZDSF”), dispersion compensating (“DCF”),and polarization maintaining (“PMF”) fibers, doped, e.g. Er, Ge, as wellas others, can be deployed as transmission fiber to interconnect nodes12 or for other purposes in the system 10. The fiber typically cansupport either unidirectional or bi-directional transmission of opticalsignals in the form of one or more information carrying optical signalwavelengths λ_(si), or “channels”. The optical signal channels in aparticular path 14 can be processed by the optical components asindividual channels or as one or more wavebands, each containing one ormore optical signal channels.

Network management systems (“NMS”) 18 can be provided to manage,configure, and control optical components in the system 10. The NMS 18generally can include multiple management layers, which can reside atone or more centralized locations and/or be distributed among theoptical components in the network. The optical components, such as thosedescribed herein, e.g., see paragraph [0026], can be grouped logicallyas network elements for the purposes of network management. One or morenetwork elements can be established at each optical component site inthe network depending upon the desired functionality in the network andmanagement system.

The NMS 18 can be connected directly or indirectly to network elementslocated either in the nodes 12 or remotely from the nodes 12. Forexample, the NMS 18 may be directly connected to network elementsserving as a node 12 via a wide area or data communication network(“WAN” or “DCN”, depicted via broken lines in FIG. 1). Indirectconnections to network elements that are remote to the DCN can beprovided through network elements with direct connections. Mixed data ordedicated supervisory channels can be used to provide connectionsbetween the network elements. The supervisory channels can betransmitted within and/or outside the signal wavelength band on the samemedium or a different medium depending upon the system requirements.

The optical transmitters 20 transmit information as optical signals viaone or more signal channels λ_(si) through the transmission media 16 tooptical receivers 22 located in other processing nodes 12. Thetransmitters 20 used in the system 10 generally include an opticalsource that provides optical power in the form of electromagnetic wavesat one or more optical wavelengths. The optical source can includevarious coherent narrow or broad band sources, such as DFB and DBRlasers, sliced spectrum sources and fiber and external cavity lasers, aswell as suitable incoherent optical sources, e.g., LED, as appropriate.The sources can have a fixed output wavelength or the wavelength can betunable using various feedback and control techniques, such astemperature, current, and gratings or other components or means forvarying the resonance cavity of the laser or output of the source.

Information can be imparted to the electromagnetic wave to produce anoptical signal carrier either by directly modulating the optical sourceor by externally modulating the electromagnetic wave emitted by thesource. Alternatively, the information can be imparted to an electricalcarrier that can be upconverted, or frequency shifted, to an opticalsignal wavelength λ_(si). Electro-optic (e.g., LiNbO₃),electro-absorption, other types of modulators and upconverters can beused in the transmitters 20.

In addition, the information can be imparted using various modulationformats and protocols. For example, various amplitude modulationschemes, such as non-return to zero (NRZ), differential encoding, andreturn to zero (RZ) using various soliton, chirped, and pulsetechnologies. Various frequency, phase, and polarization modulationtechniques also can be employed separately or in combination. One ormore transmission protocols, such as SONET/SDH, IP, ATM, DigitalWrapper, GMPLS, Fiber Channel, Ethernet, etc. can be used depending uponthe specific network application. It will be appreciated that thetransmitters 20 and receivers 22 can use one or more modulation formatsand transmission protocols within the network.

The optical receiver 22 used in the present invention can includevarious detection techniques, such as coherent detection, opticalfiltering and direct detection, and combinations thereof. The receivers22 can be deployed in modules that have incorporated wavelengthselective demultiplexers to filter a specific channel from a WDM signalor channel demultiplexing can be performed outside of the receivermodule. It will be appreciated that the detection techniques employed inthe receiver 22 will depend, in part, on the modulation format andtransmission protocols used in the transmitter 20.

Generally speaking, N transmitters 20 can be used to transmit Mdifferent signal wavelengths to J different receivers 22. Also, tunabletransmitters 20 and receivers 22 can be employed in the optical nodes 12in a network, such as in FIG. 1. Tunable transmitters 20 and receivers22 allow system operators and network architects to change the signalwavelengths being transmitted and received in the system 10 to meettheir network requirements. The transmitters 20 and receivers 22 can beadjusted dynamically using various feedback loops or operatedindependently.

In addition, the transmitters 20 and receivers 22 can include variouscomponents to perform other signal processing, such as reshaping,retiming, error correction, differential encoding, protocol processing,etc. using serial and/or parallel techniques. For example, receivers 22can be connected to the transmitters 20 in back to back configuration asa transponder or regenerator, as shown in FIG. 2. The back-to-backconfiguration can include various levels of functionality depending uponwhether it serves as a 1R (repeat or retransmit), 2R (reshape & repeat),or 3R regenerator (reshape, retime, repeat).

In multiple channel systems, the transmitters 20 and receivers 22 can beoperated in a uniform manner or the transmission and receptioncharacteristics of the signal channels can be tailored individuallyand/or in groups. For example, pre-emphasis, optical and/or electricalpre- and post-dispersion and distortion compensation can be performed oneach channel or groups of channels.

In FIG. 2, it will be appreciated that the transmitters 20 and receivers22 can be used in multiple and single channel systems, as well as toprovide short, intermediate, and/or long reach optical interfacesbetween other network equipment and systems. For example, transmitters20 and receivers 22 deployed in a WDM system can be included on one ormore modules, or circuit packs or line cards, that includes standardizedinterface receivers and transmitters, respectively, to providecommunication with interfacial devices 30, as well as other transmissionand processing systems. In addition, the transmitters 20 and receivers22 can be integrated into the input and output interfaces on interfacialdevices 30.

The optical amplifiers 24 can be deployed along optical links 15 toovercome attenuation that occurs in a span of transmission media 16. Inaddition, optical amplifiers 24 can be provided proximate to otheroptical components, for example, at the node 12 asbooster/post-amplifiers and/or pre-amplifiers to provide gain toovercome component losses. The optical amplifiers 24 can include doped(e.g. Er, other rare earth elements, etc.) and non-linear interaction(e.g., Raman, Brillouin, etc.) fiber amplifiers that provide stimulatedamplification. Various amplifiers and control schemes can be used in thepresent invention, such as those described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,115,174,6,236,487, 6,344,922, 6,344,925, and 6,356,383, which are incorporatedherein by reference. Other types of optical amplifiers, such assemiconductor amplifiers, can be used in lieu of, or in combination withoptically pumped fiber and other waveguide amplifiers.

Two or more amplifiers 24 may be co-located and concatenated to provideadditional flexibility. Each optical amplifier 24 can include one ormore serial and/or parallel stages that provide localized gain atdiscrete sites in the network and/or gain that is distributed along thetransmission media 16. One or more other functions can be performedbetween the amplifiers and/or stages of the amplifiers. For example,optical regeneration, dispersion compensation, isolation, filtering,add/drop, switching, etc. can be included at a site along with theoptical amplifiers 24.

Various types of optical switching devices, both optical switches 26 andOADMs 28, can be integrated into the nodes 12 and the all-opticalnetworking functionality of the devices can be used to establishdistance independent networks. The switching devices allow forintegrated optical transport switching, adding, dropping, and/ortermination of signal channels from multiple paths 14 entirely in theoptical domain. The switching devices 26/28 eliminate the need forreceivers 22 and transmitters 20 to perform electrical conversions, asrequired when using interfacial devices 30, merely to pass theinformation through intermediate nodes 12 _(i). As such, signal channelscan optically pass through intermediate nodes 12 _(i) between the originnodes 12 _(o) and destination nodes 12 _(d) bypassing the need fortransmitters 20 and receivers 22 at the intermediate nodes 12 _(i). Inthis manner, the switching devices provide optical transparency throughintermediate nodes 12 _(i) that allows all-optical, sometimes called“express”, connections to be established between non-adjacent origin anddestination nodes, 12 _(o) and 12 _(d), respectively, in a network.

The signal channels optically passing through the switching devices canbe distributed from a common path to multiple diverse paths, as well ascombined from multiple diverse paths onto a common path. It will beappreciated that signal channels that are switched onto a common path bythe switching devices from different paths can have differentproperties, such as optical signal to noise ratio. Conversely, signalchannels entering the switching devices from a common path and exitingthe devices via different paths may require that the signal channelsexit with different properties, such as power level. As such, signalchannels may have different span loss/gain requirements or toleranceswithin the link 15.

The optical switches 26 and OADMs 28 can be configured to processindividual signal channels or signal channel groups or wavelength bandsincluding one or more signal channels. The switching devices also caninclude various wavelength selective or non-selective switch elements,combiners 32, and distributors 34. The transmitters 20 and receivers 22can be configured to transmit and receive signal channels dynamicallythrough the switch elements or in a dedicated manner exclusive of theswitch elements using various combiners 32 and distributors 34. TheOADMs can include channel reusable and non-reusable configurations.Similarly, the switching devices can be configured to provide multicastcapability, as well as signal channel terminations.

The switching devices can include various configurations of opticalcombiners 32 and distributors 34, such as channel multiplexers anddemultiplexers, passive splitters and couplers described below, used incombination with various switch elements configured to pass or block thesignals destined for the various other nodes 12 in a selective manner.The switching of the signals can be performed at varying granularities,such as line, group, and channel switching, depending upon the degree ofcontrol desired in the system 10.

The switch element can include wavelength selective or non-selectiveon/off gate switch elements, as well as variable optical attenuatorshaving suitable extinction ratios. The switch elements can includesingle and/or multiple path elements that use various techniques, suchas polarization control, interferometry, holography, etc. to perform theswitching and/or variable attenuation function. The switching devicescan be configured to perform various other functions, such as filtering,power equalization, dispersion compensation, telemetry, channelidentification, etc., in the system 10.

Various two and three dimensional non-selective switch elements can beused in present invention, such as mechanical line, micro-mirror andother micro-electro-mechanical systems (“MEMS”), liquid crystal,holographic, bubble, magneto-optic, thermo-optic, acousto-optic,electro-optic (LiNbO₃), semiconductor, erbium doped fiber, etc.Alternatively, the switch elements can employ fixed and tunablewavelength selective multi-port devices and filters, such as thosedescribed below. Exemplary switching devices are described in PCTApplication No. PCT/US00/23051, which is incorporated herein byreference.

The interfacial devices 30 may include, for example, protocol and bitrate independent devices, such as optical switches, and/or protocol andbit rate dependent electrical switch devices, such as IP routers, ATMswitches, SONET add/drop multiplexers, etc. that operate at or betweenvarious networking layers (e.g., 1, 2, 3) and bit rates. The interfacialdevices 30 can be configured to receive, convert, aggregate, groom,and/or disassemble, and provide information in one or more variousprotocols, encoding schemes, and bit rates to one or more transmitters20. The interfacial devices can be employed to perform the conversefunction in combination with the receivers 22. The interfacial devices30 also can be used as an input/output cross-connect switch or automatedpatch panel and to provide protection switching in various nodes 12depending upon the configuration. The interfacial devices 30 can beelectrically connected to the transmitters 20 and receivers 22 oroptically connected using standard interface and/or WDM transmitters andreceivers, as previously described.

Optical combiners 32 can be provided to combine optical signals frommultiple paths into a multiple channel signal on one or more commonpaths, e.g. fiber, such as from multiple transmitters 20 or in opticalswitching devices. Likewise, optical distributors 34 can be provided todistribute one or more optical signals from one or more common paths toa plurality of different optical paths, such as to multiple receivers 22and/or optical switching devices 26/28.

The optical combiners 32 and distributors 34 can include wavelengthselective and non-selective (“passive”) fiber, planar, and/or free spacedevices, as well as polarization sensitive devices. For example, one ormore multi-port devices, such as passive, WDM, and polarization couplershaving various coupling ratios, circulators, dichroic devices, prisms,diffraction gratings, arrayed waveguides, etc. can be employed used inthe combiners 32 and distributors 34. The multi-port devices can be usedalone, or in various combinations of filters, such as tunable or fixed,high, low, or band pass or band stop, transmissive or reflectivefilters, including Bragg gratings, Fabry-Perot, Mach-Zehnder, anddichroic filters, etc. Furthermore, one or more serial or parallelstages incorporating various multi-port device and/or filtercombinations can be used in the combiners 32 and distributors 34 tomultiplex, demultiplex, and multi-cast signal wavelengths λ_(i) in theoptical systems 10.

In the present invention, one or more optical amplifiers 24 are providedwith pump energy, i.e., pump power, from one or more of the samesources. In addition, one or more sources provide pump power to only oneof the amplifiers 24. As such, at least one of the optical amplifiers 24is supplied with pump power from at least one shared source and from atleast one dedicated source.

Exemplary optical amplifier embodiments of the present invention caninclude one or more amplification sections 36 having an amplifyingfiber, or other waveguide, supplied with optical energy, or “pumppower”, from one or more pump sources 38. The amplification sections canbe disposed in the same or different transmission fibers and can amplifyoptical signal channels passing through the amplification sections inone or both directions depending upon the system. The pump sources 38can include one or more narrow band or broad band optical sources 40that provide optical power in one or more pump wavelength ranges. Thepump power is typically referenced by center pump wavelengths λ_(pi) andincludes one or more spatial and/or longitudinal modes cover awavelength range. The pump power can be combined in one or more stagesto the amplification sections using various combiners 32, such as thosepreviously described. Pump power can be supplied to the amplifying fiberfrom locally and/or remotely located pump sources 38 and counter- and/orco-propagated with the signal channels λ_(si) passing through theamplifying fiber.

Pump power can be shared: 1) in parallel, by splitting the pump powerand providing a portion of the pump power to multiple amplificationsections; and/or 2) in series, by passing at least a portion of the pumppower through multiple amplification sections. Pump power being sharedin parallel from multiple optical sources 40 generally will pass througha combiner/distributor 32/34, such as those described above, whichcouples the pump power to multiple amplification sections 36.

The amplifying fiber, or other waveguide, used in the amplificationsections can have the same or different transmission and amplificationcharacteristics than the transmission fiber. Thus, the amplificationsections can serve multiple purposes in the optical system 10, such asperforming dispersion compensation, as well as different levels ofamplification of the signal channels λ_(si).

In FIG. 3 embodiments, first, second, and third amplification sections,36 ₁, 36 ₂, and 36 ₃, are provided with pump power from a plurality ofoptical sources, 40 ₁₋₈. The amplification sections can employ the sameor different amplification mechanism and can be included in separateamplifiers on the same or different transmission paths or as multiplestages of one amplifier. It will be appreciated that pump source 38 inFIG. 3 can be embodied as multiple pump sources, as will be furtherdescribed hereinafter.

As shown in FIG. 3, optical sources 40 ₁₋₂ and 40 ₇₋₈ provide dedicatedoptical sources used to provide power to, or “pump”, the first and thirdamplification section 36 ₁ and 36 ₃. Optical sources 40 ₃₋₆ provideshared optical sources used to pump first and second amplificationsections 36 ₁ and 36 ₂ sections via combiner/distributor 32/34, whichcan be, for example, a passive or wavelength selective coupler. It willbe appreciated that pump power can be further shared in either or bothdirections by passing it through both second amplification section 36 ₂and the third amplification section 36 ₃, if the amplification sectionsare not isolated with respect to pump power.

The optical sources 40 ₁₋₈ can include various coherent narrow or broadband sources, such as DFB and DBR lasers, fiber and external cavitylasers, as well as suitable incoherent optical sources, e.g., LED andoptical noise sources, as appropriate. The wavelengths of opticalsources 40, i.e., the pump wavelengths, used to pump the amplificationsections will depend upon the amplification technique and the signalchannel wavelength range. For example, 980 nm range and 1480 nm rangeDFB lasers and fiber lasers can be used as optical sources, when erbiumfiber is used as the amplification media for signal channels in the S,C, and L bands. Similarly, for example, DFB lasers and fiber lasershaving pump wavelengths ranging from 1300–1600 nm can be used as opticalsources for Raman amplifiers depending upon whether the signal channelλ_(si) wavelength range is in the S, C, and/or L signal wavelengthranges.

FIGS. 4–7 show additional exemplary embodiments, in which multiple pumpsources 38 are used to provide pump power to multiple amplifierconfigurations. In FIG. 4, two optical sources, 40 ₁ and 40 ₅, serve asshared sources to provide pump power to two amplifiers, 24 ₁ and 24 ₂.Optical sources 40 _(2, 3, & 8) and 40 _(4, 6, & 7), serve as dedicatedsources to provide pump power to two amplifiers, 24 ₁ and 24 ₂,respectively. In FIG. 4 configurations, the optical sources 40 areprovided in multiple pump sources, 38 ₁ and 38 ₂, such that each of theamplifiers, 24 ₁ and 24 ₂, is provided with shared and dedicated pumppower from multiple pump sources 38. The multiple pump sources 38 can behoused on physically separate modules on a common or different moduleslot or shelf or in the same or different racks.

The use of multiple pump sources to supply both shared and dedicatedpump power provides additional reliability for the amplifiers 24. Inmultiple pump source configurations, the failure of one pump source willdecrease the amount of pump power provided to an amplifier 24, insteadof causing a complete loss of pump power and failure of the amplifier24.

The independent survivability of the pump sources 38 and also theequipment cost will increase depending upon the relative separation ofthe various pump sources. For example, having at least two pump sources38 will allow some pump power to be maintained in the event one of thepump sources fails. Housing pump sources 38 in different slots within ashelf will allow some pump power to be maintained if one of the pumpsources or the shelf slot fails. Continuing the example, having pumpsources in different shelves and then different racks will increasefurther the probability that one or more of the pump sources willsurvive a failure in the equipment.

One will appreciate further that the number of pump sources 38 andoptical sources 40 within each pump source 38, as well as the amount ofpump power that can be supplied by each pump source 38 can be selectedto accommodate various price and redundancy requirements. For example,two pump sources can be used as shared sources to provide power to twoor more amplifying media. If one pump source 38 fails, then eachamplifier 24 will receive some percentage of pump power from the pumpsource 38 that is still operating. Alternatively, each of the two pumpsources 38 could be designed to supply all of the pump power requiredfor the amplifiers 24. When both pump sources 38 are operating, eachwill provide some percentage, e.g., 50%, of the pump power to eachamplifier 24. In the event of a pump source failure, a feedback controlloop or other control mechanism could be used to increase the pump powerof the remaining operating pump sources 38 to provide full power to eachamplifier 24.

The combiners/distributors 32/34 used to share pump power betweenmultiple amplifying media 36 can be a passive or wavelength selectivecoupler of a suitable coupling ratio to combine pump power from thevarious optical sources 40 and splits the power the required number oftimes to provide shared power to the amplification sections. It will beappreciated that shared power can be provided to an amplificationsection at one or more points proximate or within the amplificationsection.

As shown in FIG. 4, various optical devices 42 can be deployed betweenthe first and third amplification sections, 36 ₁ and 36 ₃, to performvarious functions in the system 10. The devices 42 can be, for example,an optical isolator, gain flattening filters, fixed and variableattenuators, etc. as well as various monitoring and access ports.Optical isolator can be used to pass or block pump power co-propagatingwith the signal channels λ_(si) from the first amplification section 361to the third amplification section 36 ₃. Whereas, the isolator generallyis used to block pump power passing through the third amplificationsection 36 ₃ from reaching the first amplification section 36 ₁. Theshared pump power will be provided to both the first and thirdamplification sections, 36 ₁ and 36 ₃, while the dedicated pump power isprovided only to the third amplification section 36 ₃.

FIG. 5 depicts other embodiments in which four optical sources, 40_(1 & 5) and 40 _(4 & 8), serve as shared sources to provide pump powerto two amplification sections of respective amplifiers, 24 ₁ and 24 ₂.In addition, four optical sources, 40 _(2, 3), and 40 _(6 & 7) serve asdedicated sources to provide pump power to the third and fourthamplification sections, 36 ₃ and 36 ₄, of the amplifiers 24 ₁ and 24 ₂,respectively. In FIG. 5 configurations, the optical sources 40 also canbe provided in multiple pump sources, 38 ₁ and 38 ₂, which could beembodied as separate modules or line cards within a common shelf toprovide power to the amplifier 24, also resident on the shelf.

FIG. 6 shows an exemplary embodiment in which pump power is sharedbetween distributed and discrete amplification sections, 36 ₁ and 36 ₂,and between two discrete, also referred to as concentrated, localized orlumped, amplification sections, 36 ₃ and 36 ₄. The shared and dedicatedpump power can be at the same or different wavelengths depending uponthe particular amplifier design. For example, the shared pump powerprovided to amplification sections, 36 ₁ and 36 ₂, by optical sources 40_(1, 2, 6 & 7) can be supplied over the entire Raman pump wavelengthrange for a distributed Raman amplifier, while the dedicated pump powerprovided by optical sources 40 _(3 & 8) can include one or more bands orthe pump wavelength ranges. Alternatively, the shared pump power couldbe provided over one or more bands over the pump wavelength range.Similarly, the shared pump power provided by the four optical sources,40 ₄₋₅ and 40 ₉₋₁₀, to amplification sections, 36 ₃ and 36 ₄, can besupplied in the same or different pump wavelengths.

The first and second amplification sections, 36 ₁ and 36 ₂, are shown aspart of separate distributed and discrete amplifiers, 24 ₁ and 24 ₂. Thedistributed amplifier 24 ₁ can be a Raman amplifier or a distributederbium amplifier and the fiber can be standard transmission fiber or aspecial purpose fiber, such as dispersion compensating fiber. Similarly,the discrete amplifier 24 ₂ can be an EDFA or a Raman amplifier thatemploys dispersion compensating fiber or other fiber.

The FIG. 6 embodiment is depicted with pump power being provided toamplifiers 24 used to amplify signal channels λ_(si) travelling oppositedirections. It will be appreciated that the present invention can beused with amplifiers 24 on one or more fibers and in one or more systemsthat can provide for uni- or bi-directional signal channel transmission.In addition, while the third and fourth amplification sections, 36 ₃ and36 ₄, are depicted as two stages of a third optical amplifier 24 ₃,these sections can be included in two separate optical amplifiers.

FIG. 7 shows an exemplary embodiment in which multiple levels of pumppower sharing can be accommodated depending upon the number of differentamplification sections 36 sharing the pump power. Two shared opticalsources, 40 ₁ and 40 ₄, provide pump power to four amplificationsections 36 ₁₋₄. One shared optical source 40 ₃ provides pump power totwo amplification sections 36 ₁₋₂. Two dedicated optical sources, 40 ₂and 40 ₅, provide dedicated pump power to amplification sections 36 ₃and 36 ₄, respectively. Fiber lasers, master optical power amplifiers(“MOPA”), and other high power lasers may be deployed efficiently asshared optical sources 40 in applications where pump power is to besupplied to a large number of amplification sections. The fiber laserscan supply sufficiently high power that it can be split multiple timesand used to pump amplification sections, which, also amortizes the costof the fiber laser over the multiple amplification sections. See, forexample, U.S. Pat. No. 6,344,925.

Turning to FIG. 8, the amplification sections can be locally or remotelylocated relative to the pump sources, as previously discussed. Invarious embodiments, erbium fiber, dispersion compensating fiber, othersmall core fibers can be remotely located from the pump sources toprovide remote gain in a transmission span.

In addition, the use of remotely pumped dispersion compensating fiberallows dispersion compensation to be performed when the signal channelpower is low and provides gain to overcome the loss of the dispersioncompensating fiber. Low power dispersion compensation generallydecreases the extent of non-linear interactions between the signalchannels in the dispersion compensating fiber.

FIG. 8 shows an embodiment of a remotely located amplification section36 ₂, such as non-transmission fiber, that can be used alone or incombination with other non-amplification components 46, such as filters,etc. along a span 44 in the system 10. The discrete amplificationsection 36 ₂ is remotely located from adjacent optical amplifiers, 24 ₁and 24 ₂. It will be appreciated that the system 10 can include multiplespans including a plurality of optical amplifiers. The opticalamplifiers, 24 ₁ and 24 ₂ are depicted as including distributedamplification sections 36 ₁ and 36 ₃ supplied with pump power from pumpsources 38 ₁ and 38 ₂, respectively. It will further appreciated theoptical amplifiers, 24 ₁ and 24 ₂ can include other discrete and/ordistributed amplification sections. For example, one or both of theoptical amplifiers, 24 ₁ and 24 ₂ can include amplification sections 36that are supplied with both shared and dedicated pump power from one ormore pump sources 38 as described herein.

In the FIG. 8 embodiment, the pump power can pass through and provideRaman gain in amplification sections 36 ₁ and 36 ₃, as well as passingthrough and providing Raman gain in amplification section 36 ₂. In someinstances, it may be desirable to include an isolator in device 46, sothat only pump power from pump source 38 ₂ reaches the discreteamplification section 36 ₂. It will also be appreciated that pump powerneed only be provided from one of the adjacent optical amplifiers andneed not necessarily be provided along the transmission fiber or in thatcase from an adjacent optical amplifier.

The location of DCF or other fibers with different core diametersrelative to the point of maximum signal channel power in the spanbetween discrete amplifier locations can be varied by the skilledartisan. For example, some dispersion compensating fibers often haveeffective cross-sectional core diameters that are on the order of halfthe diameter of standard single mode fiber. As such, if these fibers aredeployed remotely from the point of maximum power in the span byapproximately 6 dB or more, then the magnitude of non-linearinteractions in the DCF would be comparable to or less than thoseoccurring in a comparble length of the standard single mode transmissionfiber.

When DCF is deployed remotely in a lower signal power portion of anetwork, the core size properties of the DCF can be used advantageously.For example, more Raman gain for a given amount of pump power than wouldbe achievable with nearly all transmission fibers without the associatednon-linear degradation, because of the low signal channel powers. Thus,the DCF can be positioned along the transmission fiber, so as to providelower non-linear interactions and a lower effective noise figure thanwould be achievable placing the DCF proximate and within discreteamplification section, as in the prior art. For example, DCF can be usedas a discrete amplification section and placed in a lower power portionof a span, such that the incremental non-linear phase shift introducedby the DCF is less than the incremental non-linear phase shiftintroduced by a comparable length of transmission fiber. Placement inthis manner will increase the optical signal to noise ratio of thesignal channels, because the non-linear degradation contribution to thenoise will be decreased relative to placement the DCF proximate orwithin the adjacent optical amplifers.

Similarly, the DCF or other fiber can be discretely placed remote to theadjacent optical amplifiers, such that the Raman gain that occurs in theremote amplification section raise the minimum signal power experiencedin the span. Placement in this manner will increase the optical signalto noise ratio of the signal channels, because the minimum signal powerin the span will be increased for the same maximum signal channel powerrelative to placement the DCF proximate or within the adjacent opticalamplifers. As such, one of ordinary skill can place the remote DCFamplification section at various points in a span to improve the opticalsignal to noise figure of the signal channel passing through the spanrelative to the optical signal to noise figure of the signal channel,when the DCF is placed proximate or within the adjacent opticalamplifers.

FIG. 8 also depicts an exemplary, hypothetical signal power profilethrough thespan 44 including the remote amplification section 36 ₂. Asdepicted the signal power decreases along the span in amplificationsection 36 ₁ until the signal reaches the remote amplification section36 ₂. In the FIG. 8 depiction, the remote amplification section 36 ₂receives pump power from first and second pump sources, 38 ₁ and 38 ₂,and provides sufficient gain to maintain the signal power through thesection. Thereafter, the signal power continues to decrease untilsufficient gain is provided in distributed amplification section 36 ₃,which is provided with pump power from pump source 38 ₂.

The pump power can be propagated to the remote amplification section viathe same fiber that carries the optical signals, which also can be usedto provide distributed Raman amplification depending upon the relativewavelength differential between the pump power and signal channels. Thepump power can be co- and/or counter-propagated with the signal channelsλ_(si). Alternatively, the pump power can be delivered via a separatetransmission path.

A number of factors, such as span and DCF loss, achievable remote Raman,signal channel powers, available real estate, etc. can be considered byone of skill in locating the remote amplification sections and/or otheroptical components, such as filters, etc. For example, it may bedesirable to locate a remote DCF at a location where sufficient gain canbe achieved from remote Raman amplification to overcome the loss of theDCF and provide some additional gain in the span. In other situations,it may be more desirable to locate the DCF or other components inpre-existing buildings in the network.

In addition, the amount of DCF or other fibers placed remote to theadjacent amplifiers that is used to improve the OSNR can be varied bythe skilled artisan. For example, it may be desirable to providedispersion compensation in an amount more, less, or equal to the amountof dispersion compensation required for a span of transmission fiber.For example, it may be desirable to provide more dispersion compensationin one span and provide less or none in another span, because, forexample, the lengths of the spans may be different and/or the amount ofavailable pump power for Raman gain may be different.

In operation, the shared and dedicated pump power provided to theamplification sections 36 can be fixed or varied dynamically dependingupon how the optical systems 10 is operated. In various applications,the shared pump power will be provided at a fixed power and thededicated pump power will be fixed or varied dynamically to provide therequired power to the amplification section 36. Various embodiments canbe used to provide dedicated and shared pump power to one or moreamplifiers 24 colocated at a geographic location in a network andtreated as one or more network elements to support uni- orbi-directional signal channel transmission in one or more systems 10.

Additionally, in various embodiments, the shared source can beconfigured to provide power to different numbers of amplificationsections 36 to facilitate various network procedures. For example,amplifier turn-up procedures can be facilitated by configuring theshared source to provide power to only one amplification section. Afterthe turn-up procedure is completed, the shared source can be configuredto share power with multiple amplification sections 36 during operation.Also, network control procedures can be used to prevent power from beingsupplied to one or more amplification sections. This functionalitysupports eye safety procedures, if shutdown of less than all of theamplification sections becomes necessary, such as in the event of afiber break affecting less than all of the amplification sections.

Shared source embodiments that allow power to be turned off to less thanall of the amplification section can be provided in various manners. Forexample, mechanical switches or variable attenuators can be coupled tothe output ports of a passive coupler/splitter used to distribute sharedoptical power. The switches and attenuators can be monitored andoperated under hardware and/or software control. Also, dynamic splittersthat can be used to vary the power split ratio between the output portscan be used.

The present invention can be embodied in many specific configurations.For example, 980 nm pump power can be shared between two erbium dopedfiber amplifiers (“EDFA”) and used to pump the erbium in the samedirection as the signal channels. Whereas, dedicated 1480 nm pump powercan be used to pump the erbium in the direction opposite to the signalchannels λ_(si). The erbium doped fiber could be a single, continuousamplification section or multiple amplification sections separated intostages via non-amplification sections. For example, the 980 nm and 1480nm pump power could be supplied to the same erbium doped fiber or toseparate sections of erbium doped fiber separated by non-erbium dopedfiber. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 5,140,456.

It will be appreciated that the present invention provides for improvedtransmission systems with increased reliability and performance. Thoseof ordinary skill in the art will further appreciate that numerousmodifications and variations that can be made to specific aspects of thepresent invention without departing from the scope of the presentinvention. It is intended that the foregoing specification and thefollowing claims cover such modifications and variations.

1. An optical system comprising: at least one transmitter; at least onereceiver configured to receive at least one optical signal from said atleast one transmitter; a transmission fiber configured to carry theoptical signals from said at least one transmitter to said at least onereceiver; and, a plurality of optical amplifiers configured to amplifyoptical signals being transmitted from said transmitter to said receiverthrough the transmission fiber, wherein said plurality of opticalamplifiers includes a first optical amplifier having at least a firstoptical amplification section supplied with power from at least oneshared source including a plurality of optical sources that furtherprovides power to at least a second optical amplification section and atleast one dedicated source that provides power to only one opticalamplification section.
 2. The system of claim 1, further comprising atleast one dispersion compensation fiber (“DCF”) configured to receivepump power to provide Raman gain to the optical signals passing throughthe DCF, wherein the DCF is discretely placed remote from said opticalamplifiers along the transmission fiber, such that the optical signal tonoise ratio of the optical signals is greater than when the DCF isplaced proximate or within one of said optical amplifiers.
 3. The systemof claim 1, wherein said shared source and said dedicated source providepower to the same amplification sections of said first opticalamplifier.
 4. The system of claim 1, wherein said shared source and saiddedicated source provide power to the different amplification sectionsof said first optical amplifier.
 5. The system of claim 1, wherein saiddedicated source provides power to a third optical amplification sectiononly.
 6. The system of claim 1, wherein said at least one shared sourcesupplies power to a first plurality of optical amplifiers that includesa plurality of optical amplification sections.
 7. The system of claim 1,wherein said first and second optical amplification sections are twostages in said first optical amplifier.
 8. The system of claim 1,wherein said second optical amplification section is part of a secondoptical amplifier.
 9. The system of claim 8, wherein said second opticalamplifier is configured to amplify optical signal transmitted from atleast one second transmitter to at least one second receiver.
 10. Thesystem of claim 9, wherein said second optical amplifier is notconfigured to amplify optical signal transmitted from said at least onefirst transmitter to said at least one first receiver.
 11. The system ofclaim 8, wherein said first and second optical amplifiers are providedon different transmission paths.
 12. The system of claim 1, wherein:said at least one first transmitter is at least one of a plurality offirst transmitters; said at least one first receiver is at least one ofa plurality of first receivers; and, said first optical amplifier isconfigured to amplify optical signals being transmitted from saidplurality of first transmitters to said plurality of first receivers.13. The system of claim 1, wherein substantially equal pump power isprovided to each amplification section from the shared source.
 14. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein said first and second amplification sectionsinclude erbium doped fiber and said optical sources include lasers thatsupply power in at least one of the 980 nm and 1480 nm wavelengthranges.
 15. An optical amplifier comprising: at least a first opticalamplification section supplied with power from at least one sharedsource including a plurality of optical sources that further providespower to at least a second optical amplification section and at leastone dedicated source that provides power to only one opticalamplification section of the amplifier.
 16. The amplifier of claim 15,wherein said first and second optical amplification sections are twostages in the optical amplifier.
 17. The amplifier of claim 15, whereinsaid second optical amplification section is part of a second opticalamplifier.
 18. The amplifier of claim 15, wherein said shared source andsaid dedicated source provide power to the same amplification section ofthe optical amplifier.
 19. The system of claim 1, wherein said sharedsource and said dedicated source are provided at the same physicallocation in the system.
 20. The system of claim 1, wherein each of theplurality of optical amplifiers is provided power from at least oneshared source and at least one dedicated source.